Project Proposal Video

For this assignment you and your team will create and submit a 5-6 minute video for your project proposal. Tap into your own creativity. Make something you are proud of and would want to post on-line or include in a presentation.

We will use time in class to watch the videos, answer questions and provide feedback.

NOTE: Your instructor assumes that you are well past the proposal stage and are actively working on closing your open loops.

1. Create video

Use the storyboard and the feedback from your previous assignment as a guild to making the video. Do not be afraid to deviate from the plan if you have a new and exciting idea.

Prepare the presentation for a general audience. Make something that you could show to in-coming data science student (or a family member) to get them excited about the project. Also remember that your sponsor will be watching this presentation so think of this as an opportunity to “Wow” them.

Some things to consider for your storyboard:

Include who will be speaking for each slide. (All members of the team should talk).
Use the notes field in the slide show program to outline what you want to say for each section of the video.
Include introductions for group members.
Describe the overall goals of the project.
Describe the major open-loops** that will need to be solved (closed).
Describe the expected successful outcomes.
Plan not exceed the 10 minute talk length.

We really want to see creativity. Think outside of slides and talking. Demonstrate to us why your project is awesome!

Let your instructor know what you are thinking, we may be able to show you some easy to use tools to produce your vision.

** An open-loop is a part of the project for which you do not know what your solution will include.

2. Video Recording/Editing/Posting Software

The following are a few examples of tools you should be able to get for your home computers. Search the Internet for tutorials and feel free to reach out to the instructors for ideas.

Zoom: Although primarily intended for live communication, the Zoom program we use in class is really good at recording video and what you are doing on your desktop.
Snagit Another screen capture program available to Students (or with a free trial). Snagit, is a simple to use video capture program developed by TechSmith (A local company with lots of MSU alumni). A free version of Snagit is available temporarily as long as it is only used for Classwork. Please see this D2L link for more information and the temporary user agreement.
Camtasia Another really good capture and editing program by TechSmith. This is their elite editing program with a ton of features. You may need to give yourself some time to learn how to use the program. A free version of Camtasia is available temporarily as long as it is only used for Classwork. Here is a workshop that walks you though the basic features of Camtasia.
OpenShot an Open Source video editor.
FFmpeg Open Source command line video conversion tool. Great for taking a folder of images and combining them into an animated video.
YouTube - You all know this one. On-line video posting tool.
MediaSpace Slightly more secure place to post on-line video. Post here if you want to limit video watching to just your instructors and fellow students.

Tool	Camera Capture	Screen Capture	Video Editing	On-line Posting	Open Source
Zoom	yes	yes	no	no	no
Snagit	yes	yes	some?	no	no
Camtasia	yes	yes	yes	no	no
OpenShot	maybe?	maybe?	yes	no	yes
FFMpeg	no	no	no	no	yes
YouTube	no	no	yes	yes	no
MediaSpace	no	no	no	yes	no

There are probably hundreds of other tools you could use. Don’t be afraid to see what is available on your smart phones and tablets.

3. Creating your video

There are three basic types of video you may want to develop:

Audio/Video of you talking about your research.
Screen capture of slides or demo software.
Computer generated animations and transitions.

If you set up a camera such as your phone or your laptop to record yourself, make sure it is on a stable surface and that the background is uncluttered and make sure the sound quality is clear.

4. Editing your video

Although some of you may be able to create your video in one shot. Generally it is better if you edit your video. Use the editing tools and think about ways to combine the different types of video you created.

5. Posting your video

Post your video someplace accessible by your instructor and other students. Probably the easiest place to post is on YouTube using a personal Google Account. However, students can also post on the MSU Mediaspace or just upload the file to your video file to a Google drive folder. Once up on MediaSpace you can limit access to only MSU people logged in that have access to the URL.

Include a link to the URL in your git repository. A good place would be to embed the video in your README.md file but you can also embed YouTube videos in a Jupyter notebook.

6. Submission

Have one on your team email a link to the video to the instructors. Carbon Copy (CC) all members of your team (including yourself) and CC your sponsors (if they have asked to be included). The title of the email should be “GROUP_NAME-CMSE495_Proposal_Presentation_Video”.

Make sure you also include the link in your team git repository and the team final report.

Written by Dr. Dirk Colbry, Michigan State University
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.